Bangert: Can Lafayette’s 11 most endangered structures be saved?

Wabash Valley Trust for Historic Preservation celebrates some rare victories along with a warning about Greater Lafayette's most endangered structures

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Matt Weller talks about the historic Pottlitzer House Thursday, November 2, 2017, at 801 Brown Street in Lafayette. Weller is Chair of the Preservation Committee of Wabash Valley Trust for Historic Preservation. The house, which was built in 1893, was damaged by fire several years ago. The house is one of 11 structures on Wabash Valley Trust for Historic Preservation’s list of endangered structures. “It would be a shame if it (the Pottlitzer House) was added to the list of lost structures of Lafayette,” said Weller.(Photo: John Terhune/Journal & Courier)Buy Photo

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Scroll down to see pictures and descriptions of the 11 on the endangered structures list.

LAFAYETTE, Ind. – From freshly poured sidewalks and brick pavers laid along the new curbs of Brown Street, Matt Weller pointed to the torn sheets of plastic that have been blowing in third-story windows below the chateau roof in the big, yellow house built in 1893 near the corner of Eighth Street.

A pair of yellow building permits, dated from 2016, were taped to the window of the 3,680-square-foot home originally built near downtown Lafayette for food wholesaler Leo Pottlitzer and his wife, Minnie. And Weller, a member of the Wabash Valley Trust for Historic Preservation, pointed to signs of here-and-there construction in the years since a fire ripped up the upper stories and the back of the house with a mix of Colonial Revival and Queen Anne architectural features.

The open windows up high, though, were the main reason the vacant house landed on the Wabash Valley Trust’s annual endangered structures list – 11 properties the nonprofit preservation group has called out for deteriorating conditions to historic architecture in Greater Lafayette.

The Pottlitzer House is listed at No. 1.

“It really is an iconic look and important to the neighborhood,” Weller said. “It really would be terrible to lose it. We know this is going to take some work.”

Wilson and his wife, Sonja, got the house at 801 Brown St. six years ago. It’s one 23 properties, with 73 rental units, they own. Wilson said the fire was set intentionally and spread by gasoline someone poured on a set of back steps. The insurance settlement, he said, didn’t go as far as he’d hoped it would.

“As old as this building is, we’d like to see it come back up, too,” Wilson said. “I know I sure would. And I’d like to get people back into it and rent it out again. But my wife and I, we’re pretty much doing the work ourselves, along with another young man. Like I say, I just don’t have the money to do it all at one time. …

“This is real expensive, and it’s real work.”

If the Wabash Valley Trust is still casting about for a motto for it endangered structures list, that might be it: Real expensive and real work.

“The list isn’t meant to shame owners who can’t afford to take care of historic properties,” Weller said. “It’s more about awareness. It’s more to reach out to the community to point out places worth saving and to maybe find resources that could help in each of these cases.”

The list, released last week to Wabash Valley Trust members, is a smattering of homes, a church, a collection of buildings at the Indiana Veterans’ Home and a relic of the Cold War slowly rotting away in the northern part of Tippecanoe County.

The list, which includes a mix of perennial contenders for imminent doom and newcomers that deserve monitoring, is a consensus of observations of vacant properties by Wabash Valley Trust members, said Shawna McCully, president of the organization.

“It’s also about those success stories,” McCulley said.

This year’s edition is a rare one brimming with structures Wabash Valley Trust members moved off the endangered list.

Among them:

► A house at 617 New York St. that Ellsworth-Romig Neighborhood residents worked valiantly to save for nearly a decade, managed to keep the place up until new owner Angelica Kokkalis, a West Lafayette doctor, stepped in and spent nearly three years renovating.

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Angelica Kokkalis talks about the work involved to restore a historic home in the 600 block of New York Street Thursday, March 23, 2017, in Lafayette. The century old home was close to being demolished by the city in 2014.(Photo: John Terhune/Journal & Courier)

► The recent sales and early renovations of the Zinn-Fitzgerald House at 717 Columbia St. and the Mount Zion United Methodist Church on County Road 500 North in West Lafayette.

The common denominator is that none of them were for the faint of heart. Or those who were short of cash or energy.

“This is a not-quite overwhelming, but close, amount of work,” said Bev Shaw, who oversees West Lafayette’s Community Historic Project Support (CHiPS), a group created to help raise money to save the Grand View Cemetery caretaker’s home and then renovate it into a museum.

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The old caretaker's residence at Grand View Cemetery May 23 at 1510 N. Salisbury in West Lafayette. The unique structure built with field stones dates to 1903.
The old caretaker's residence at Grand View Cemetery Monday, May 23, 2016, at 1510 N. Salisbury in West Lafayette. The unique structure built with field stones dates to 1903. Owners Steve Darcy Weston are selling the cemetery.(Photo: John Terhune/Journal & Courier, John Terhune/Journal & Courier)

West Lafayette bought the caretaker’s home, built in 1903, in April when the owners looked to split it from the rest of the cemetery and sell the lot for a new home. Mayor John Dennis agreed when residents called to save the landmark near the crest of the Salisbury Street hill.

Since then, it’s been a number of fundraising events – including a cemetery walk two weeks ago – and a search for grants and donations. Shaw said the early estimates say the project could run more than $300,000.

“This is going to take us years,” Shaw said. “It’s not like we had the money just sitting around. But there were so many people excited about this, so here we go. … We have a long, uphill climb.”

Sue Eiler, a rural West Lafayette resident recently retired from Purdue University, was a driving force behind saving the Morris Schoolhouse, which sat on land slated for a Franciscan Health project. The one-room schoolhouse, in use from 1879 to 1916 before being used to store corn among other things, had been largely hidden until U.S. 231 opened a few years ago. Eiler took interest and tried to rally support to move Morris Schoolhouse before it had to be torn down.

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Large, metal sheets are laid before the old Morris School house so it can be moved across an open field to a new location Wednesday, March 8, 2017, near Cumberland Avenue and the U.S. 231 by-pass. Wolfe House & Building Mover, North Manchester, moved the old school.(Photo: John Terhune/Journal & Courier)

“I think we were fortunate,” Eiler said. “It came at the right time for the community and the right time for me, as I had just retired. … What I found was that when you have somebody step up to take the lead how eager people were to get involved. ‘Save the schoolhouse, you say? What a great idea.’”

Morris Schoolhouse also benefited from a gift of land next door from Lynn Cason, whose family had the schoolhouse property for generations. West Lafayette promised to use that land as a park. And a committee continues to raise money to renovate the schoolhouse, moved three-quarters of a mile across the field in March. Plans are to make it a living museum.

“Things kind of came together,” Eiler said. “Which is good. Because when these things are gone, they’re gone.”

Weller said that’s the motivation behind the endangered structures list.

“I’m not sure what role we played with the list,” Well said. “This is, by no means, meant to be a complete list of structures that could use some help. But I know we’re bringing attention. And that’s a start.”

Steve Reust owns a house at 303 Perrin Ave. making its debut on the 2017 endangered structures list. He said he’s been doing what he can to fix up the place that sits one over from his home in the Perrin Neighborhood. But he said he’s had to spend time maintaining his other eight rentals, most of which are within a few blocks of his home.

“It didn’t start out this way, but it’s my retirement project now,” Reust said. “As for how long it’s going to take? It’s not months. It’s years. Hopefully, a couple. Not 10 or 20 years.”

Weller said Wabash Valley Trust keeps properties on the list “until there’s movement on the structure and some resolution.”

“Is that going to take some time? We know it will,” Weller said. “But it’s so easy to get used to nothing happening if you just let it, I don’t know, not happen.”

As he got ready to walk away from the house at 801 Brown St., the Visqueen flapping in gaping third-floor windows, Weller said: “There’s too much at stake to just let these places fall apart without saying anything.”

ON THE ENDANGERED STRUCTURES LIST

Here are the 11 properties called out by the Wabash Valley Trust for Historic Preservation in the 2017 version of the non-profit group’s Endangered Structures List.

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The historic Pottlitzer House Thursday, November 2, 2017, at 801 Brown Street in Lafayette. The house, which was built in 1893, was damaged by fire several years ago. The house is one of 11 structures on Wabash Valley Trust for Historic Preservation’s list of endangered structures.(Photo: John Terhune/Journal & Courier)

1. Pottlitzer House, 801 Brown St., Lafayette

History/why it’s on the list: The house, built in 1893 as the home of Leo and Minnie Pottlitzer, includes a mix of late-19th century styles, including Colonial Revival, Chateau and Queen Anne. A fire in 2015 damaged the building. The home’s front window displays two city-issued building permits issued in 2016, while the upper floors remain open to the elements. Roger Wilson, who owns the five-unit house with his wife, Sonja, said they are working to bring the property up. They are doing the work themselves, “so it’s not going to go as fast as you might like to see,” said Wilson, whose time also is taken with caring for 23 other properties with 73 rental units. “It’s a lot of work, I can tell you that.”

The Commandant's House at the Indiana Veterans' Home in West Lafayette. The building is one of three at the veterans home on the 2017 edition of the Wabash Valley Trust for Historic Preservation's endangered structures list.(Photo: Photo provided)

2. Indiana Veterans’ Home buildings, 3851 North River Road, West Lafayette

History/why it’s on the list: The trust’s list includes the only three original structures remaining from the days when the Indiana Veterans’ Home was constructed in the 1890s: the Commandant’s House, built in a Dutch Colonial Revival style; the Administration Building, a brick Queen Anne structure; and Lawrie Library, an example of Classic Revival architecture. The three are grouped together at the top of the drive leading from North River Road and have been listed on the National Register of Historic Places since 1974. Fundraising efforts, including by the Daughters of the American Revolution, continue to help restoration and upkeep for the Commandant’s House. Diana Vice, a DAR leader, said the group raised $5,000 so far and is looking into grant opportunities to help with the state-owned properties. But all three structures have had frequent spots on the Wabash Valley Trust’s endangered list.

This Italianate home at 812 N. Seventh St. in Lafayette is on the 2017 edition of the Wabash Valley Trust for the Historic Preservation's endangered structures list.(Photo: Photo provided)

3. 812 N. Seventh St., Lafayette

History/why it’s on the list: The home, built in the 1870s, caught the Trust’s eye for its Italianate style, featuring a brick cornice, decorative brackets, ornate window lintels and a large arched entry. The home, listed under an owner with an address in Philadelphia, is vacant.

The Joseph Bank House at 303 Perrin Ave. in Lafayette is on the 2017 edition of the Wabash Valley Trust for Historic Preservation's endangered structures list.(Photo: Photo provided)

4. 303 Perrin Ave., Lafayette

History/why it’s on the list: Built in 1887, as the home of Joseph Beck, in the historic Perrin Neighborhood. The Trust highlights the original woodwork and efforts to maintain the home, but notes that it has been vacant for several years. Steve Reust, who lives one door up Ferry Street, picked up the house out of foreclosure about five years ago. He said he knew the house was in rough shape – the city already had pulled the property’s occupancy permit – but it turned out to be rougher inside than he expected, thanks to a leaky roof and some structural issues. The house has a new roof and new wiring. He called the property his retirement project, which will get attention after maintaining eight other rentals. As for being in the Trust’s endangered spotlight? “I didn’t even know,” Reust said. “So I’m not sure if that’s going to be bad or good. I guess I'm about to find out.”

Farmers Institute at 4626 W. County Road 660 South in Shadeland is on the 2017 edition of the Wabash Valley Trust for Historic Preservation's endangered structures list.(Photo: Photo provided)

5. Farmers Institute, 4626 W. County Road 660 South, Shadeland

History/why it’s on the list: Here’s the Trust’s write-up: “The Farmers institute opened in 1851 as the first school of higher learning in rural Tippecanoe County, which remained in operation until 1888. The Greek Revival building was expanded to its present two stories in 1865. In addition to once housing a public library, the building was reportedly also a stop on the Underground Railroad. Over the years, it has served as a meetinghouse for the Quaker community. … The property was added to the National Register in 1986.” The Farmers Institute has been on the Trust’s annual endangered list several times. According to a post on the Farmer’s Institute Friends page on Facebook, repairs and painting were done to the exterior this fall. “It looks fabulous,” according to the post.

This gable-front house at 628 N. Sixth St. in Lafayette is on the 2017 edition of the Wabash Valley Trust for Historic Preservation's endangered structures list.(Photo: Photo provided)

6. 628 N. Sixth St., Lafayette

History/why it’s on the list: The house was built in the 1860s and remodeled around 1900, according to the Trust, with Greek Revival and Italianate styles. The house was renovated in 2001, but is showing disrepair to the porch, roof and trim. Attempts reach the owners listed in county property records were not immediately successful.

7. Cairo Skywatch Tower, West County Road 850 North, Cairo

The Cairo Watch Tower on County Road 850 North in northern Tippecanoe County is on the 2017 edition of the Wabash Valley Trust for Historic Preservation's endangered structures list.(Photo: Photo provided)

History/why it’s on the list: The 40-foot wooden tower – Post Delta Lima 3 Green – was built in 1952 as part of the Air Force’s Civilian Ground Observation Corps and its Operation Skywatch program, Korean War and Cold War-era efforts to watch for Russian planes flying overhead. The structure, one of the first watchtowers built under the program, was listed on the National Register of Historic Places in 2002. John O’Connor – whose father, Lawrence, was a driving force in building the structure – takes care of the tower five miles north of West Lafayette, including efforts to remove the bottom ladders and platforms to keep people off of it. Earlier this year, O’Connor told IndyStar reporter Will Higgins: “I want to keep this for posterity, because this represents what America is all about. The tower represents patriotism.”

This gable-front house at 1018 Salem St. in Lafayette is on the 2017 edition of the Wabash Valley Trust for Historic Preservation's endangered structures list.(Photo: Photo provided)

8. 1018 Salem St., Lafayette

History/why it’s on the list: The Trust considers this brick, gable-front house, built in the 1860s, as one of the earliest ones in Lincoln Neighborhood on Lafayette’s north end. The house is listed for sale. The price for the four-bedroom, two-bath, 2,324-square-foot house is $65,000 – “as is.”

This early settler's cabin at 6434 Prophet's Rock Road in Battle Ground is on the 2017 edition of the Wabash Valley Trust for Historic Preservation's endangered structures list.(Photo: Photo provided)

9. 6434 Prophets Rock Road, Battle Ground

History/why it’s on the list: Here’s the Trust’s take: “This single-pen log cabin just outside of Battle Ground is one of the area’s rare surviving examples of early settlement construction. Some local historians believe that the structure could be a trading post built by William Burnett and could possibly date to the end of 18th century, making it one of the area’s oldest structures. A French fur trader from Vincennes, Burnett is considered to be one of the area’s first European settlers and he operated a small trading post in the area. The lack of land records during this period makes it difficult to confirm the building’s age, however the style and method of construction corroborate the fact that the cabin is a significant early structure and worthy of preservation.” Attempts to reach the owner listed in county property records were not immediately successful.

This house at 2160 North River Road is on the 2017 edition of the Wabash Valley Trust for Historic Preservation's endangered structures list.(Photo: Photo provided)

10. 2160 North River Road, West Lafayette

History/why it’s on the list: The Indiana limestone house was built in 1948, across North River Road from the Wabash River. The Trust calls the home “an early residential example of the mid-century modern style that became popular following (World War II).” The Wabash River Enhancement Corp. bought the property in 2012. Stanton Lambert, the non-profit agency’s executive director, said the property is one of 17 the Wabash River Enhancement Corp. has purchased in recent years to get right of way for future trails along the river. He said some of the worst of those have been demolished. Lambert said 2160 North River Road has been winterized and shored up and is one that likely will be resold as a residence.

This Craftsman bungalow at 705 North St. in Lafayette is on the 2017 edition of the Wabash Valley Trust for Historic Preservation's endangered structures list.(Photo: Photo provided)

11. 705 North St., Lafayette

History/why it’s on the list: The Trust says this Craftsman bungalow, built in 1915 in the Centennial Neighborhood, “exemplifies the comfortable family homes that became popular in the 1910s.” Attempts reach the owner listed in county property records were not immediately successful.